Mail-delivery box.



PATENTED JULY V26, 1904.

J. A. BARGLAY.

MAIL DELIVERY BOX.

APPLIOATION Hum Nov.19, 1903.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

No MODEL.

Gb W/TNESSES:

ATTORNEY PATENTED JULY 26, 1904.

J. A. BARCLAY.

MAIL DELIVERY BOX.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 19, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

W/ TNESS'ES:

/NVENTUH I. Jmesmczy A TTOHNE YS.

Patented July 26, 1904.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES ALLAN BARCLAY, OF BALLENA, CALIFORNIA.

MAIL-DELIVERY BOX.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 766,095, dated July 26,1904.

Application filed November 19, 1903. Serial No. 181.808. (No model.)

T0 a/ZZ whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES ALLAN BARCLAY, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Ballena, in the county of San Diego and State ofCalifornia, have invented a new and Improved Mail-Delivery Box, of whichthe following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to a class of mailboxes employed for the deliveryof mail-matter at residences or places of business by mailcarriers, andhas for its object to provide a mail-delivery box having novel detailsof construction that adapt it for the safe holding of mail-matter placedtherein, that will sound an alarm when the box is opened to depositInail or notify the owner if an attempt is made to surreptitiouslyremove the contents of the box, a further object being to provide meansfor supporting' and displaying mail-matter that is to be collected bythe authorized collector.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination ofparts, as is hereinafter described, and defined in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying' drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the ligures.

Figure l is a perspective view of the improved mail-box in position forservice. Fig. Q is a longitudinal sectional viewsubstantially on theline 2 2 in Fig. 4. Fig. 3 is a partial plan view of the Inail-box anddetails of construction thereon fully exposed by a removal of the topwall of the box. Fig. 4 is an end view of the supported mail-box and aside view of the support for collectible mail arranged for service,parts being in section. Fig. 5 is a detached perspective view of thebell-strike mechanism and portions of the bell and of the deposit-doorfor the mail-box; and Fig. 6 is a sectional detail View takensubstantially on the line 6 6 in Fig. 4, showing the springpressedrest-block and the mail-holding arm engaged with and supported inextended position by the rest-block.

The mail-box body l0 may be constructed of wood or metal of suitabledimensions and preferably rectangular form having an inclined top walll0, that overhangs at the edges so as to protect the joint between itand the upright walls of the body from intrusion of the elementstherethrough.

In arranging the improved mail-box for service it may with advantage besecured either on a post or upon the vertical wall of a building, as maybe most convenient, the box-body having contact with its rear wall withthe support upon which it is ixed,`the drawings representing it assecured upon the vertical wall A of a dwelling-house. An inlet-aperturet is formed in the front wall IO" of the body 10 near the upper edge ofsaid wall or, as shown, cutting through said upper edge, this aperturebeing formed with vertical side edges and a lower edge substantially atrig'ht angles therewith; but preferably the corners are made curvedinstead of angular. The aperture t is designed for the use of themail-carrier to deposit mail in the box and is of suflicient size topermit the free insertion of letters or papers therethrough.

A door II is hung in the aperture fr by means of a pintle-rod which issecured upon the upper edge of the door and projects at cach sidethereof to afford trunnions 1)', seated in recesses L2, formed in theupper edge of the front wall of the box-body, so the door may be rockedon the trunnions that are held to rock in the recesses when the top wall10 is secured on the box-body IO.

Near the lower edge of the door ll and parallel therewith abatteri-strip IQ, of metal, in the forni of an elongated plate issecured upon the inner surface of the door, and, as shown in Figs. Q and3, one end, e, of said strip projects from the door at the side edge ofthe same, so as to have contact with the inner side of the front walllOb at and near the side edge of the aperture a, so that the door isprevented from swingingoutward, and the weight of the strip l2 insuresthe closure of the door.

To notify the users of the mail-box when the door Il is swung inward forthe deposit of mail in the box, a gong-bell 13 of considerable size isprovided and supported upon the end of the box-body l0 that is nearestto the edge of the aperture u, whereon the end of the strip l2 hascontact. Upon the inner IOO side of the front wall b and opposite theend l e of the batten-strip 12 that laps on said boxwall a bracket 12ais secured, and upon said bracket the adjacent end portions of the twolevers 14 15 are pivoted, as at c c, and adapted to rock in the samehorizontal plane. The levers 14 15 are preferably sloped on theiradjacent edges at their ends that have lapped engagement with each otherand project oppositely from their points of engagement, the end of thelever 14 that extends toward the door 11 overlapping the end e of thebattenstrip 12. The other lever, 15, extends from its pivot c' through aslot in the end wall of the box 10, carrying the bell 13, said slotbeing horizontal and preferably protected at its outer edge by theslotted escutcheon-plate d, secured over said slot on the box wall, asshown in Fig. 1. The lever 14 is pressed upon by a finger-spring 16,-secured by one end upon the inner surface of the front wall 10 of thebox-body, and as the lapped ends of the levers 14 15 areypositioned atshort distances from their pivots c c it will be seen that the act ofswinging the door 11 inward will cause the sloped end of the lever 14 topress upon the sloped and lapped end of the lever 15, which will rockthe latter and move the opposite end of 'said lever in the slot that isprotected bythe escutcheon-plate CZ.

A bell-strike is provided consisting of an arm 17, having a hammer-head17 l on one end and a tripping member 17b extended down- 'wardly at ornear a right angle from the opposite end of the arm. A perforation e isformed in the bell-strike at the junction of the hammer-arm with thetripping member 17 b, and said bell-strike is pivoted through theperforation e upon the end wall of the boxbody at a point that willdispose the hammerhead 17 a above and in normal contact with the bell atits edge, as is indicated in Figs. 1 and 5, the lower portion of thetripping member or arm 17b project-ing near to and in the path of theouter end portion of the lever 15.

It will be evident that upon the application of pressure upon the outerside of the door 11 the end e of the hatten-strip 12 will press upon theadjacent end of the lever 14 and rock said lever, which will put thefinger-spring 16 nnder tension and in turn rock the lever 15 so that theouter end of the latter will be caused to traverse the slot in the endwall of the boxbody and rock the bell-strike, correspondingly elevatingthe hammer-head 17 a, which will drop by gravity into contact with thebell 13 when the rocking movement yof the door 11 carries the end of thehatten-strip 12 away from and releases the end of the lever 14 uponwhich it impinged.

It will be seen that upon the release of the lever 14 from contact withthe end e of the batten-strip 12 the stress of the spring 16 will returnthe end portion of the lever 14 to its normal position, and when thedoor 11 is perwill cause a vibration of the end of the lever 14 that isimpinged upon by the end of the Vbatteri-strip, so that the latter willpass forward and clear the adjacent end of the lever it lhas vibrated,whereupon the door will be closedand the working details of thebellstrike willresume normal adjustment for a repetition of theirstriking action, when the door 11 is again pushed 'inward a suflicientdistance to permit the free insertion of mailmatter into the mail-box.

To prevent tampering with the portions of the bell-strike that are onthe outer side of the mail-box body 10, a substantial casing 18 may beprovided therefor, and to permit the sound of the bell to escape freelythis casing 18 may with advantage be formed of strong netting fabric, asshown in Fig. 1.

Another door 19 for the removal of mail is preferably located in an endwall of the boxbody, and, as shown, this door, which is hinged to swingand open or close a suitable opening, may be placed below thebell-casing 18, the door being held closed by a suitable lock thereoncontrolled by a key that may be used by any person who has a right toopen the box and remove mail-matter therefrom.

Upon the end of the box-body opposite that carrying the bell 13 an arm2O is pivoted, as at c, near one of its ends, so that the arm, which isof considerablel length, may either hang pendent close to the end walland rest upon a projection g' or be rocked into a horizontal positionfor an extension of its free end beyond the front wall of the mail-box.The arm 20 is designed to hold mail-matter, such as letters that are tobe taken therefrom by the mail-collector, and to adapt it for such apurpose a resilient finger-piece 2Ou is secured by one end upon the sideof said arm at a proper distance from its free end, so that one or moreletters or the like may be clasped between the opposed end portions ofthe arm and finger-piece thereon and held, as indicated in the drawings,for removal by the mailcollector.

The preferred means for supporting the arm 2O in an outwardly-extendedposition is shown in Fig. 2, 4, and 6 and consists, essentially, inpivoting a rest-block 21 in a vertical slot L, formed in the end wall ofthe box 10, whereon the arm 2O is pivoted, said slot being located nearthe front wall and top wall of the box-body, as shown in Fig. 4. Therest-block 21 is preferably notched, as at c', in its upper end for thereception and reliable support of the arm 20, which is seated in thenotch z' when it is desired to hold the arm projected beyond the frontof the box for the retention of letters or the like that are to be takento the post-oflice by the mail-collector. The rest-block 21, which ispivoted at m a short distance below the notch z', may be ren- IOO IZO

dered convex or otherwise adapted for contact with the free end of thefinger-spring 2Q, which is secured by one end upon the inner side of theend wall of the box and projects over the inner edge of the rest-block,the pressure of the spring being adapted to rock the notched upper endof the rest-block into the slot la, when the block is not engaged bythearm 20, so that the latter maybe freely lowered if it is first raisedfrom the rest-block to permit the pressure of the spring to rock theblock into the slot 7i.

It will be apparent that when the arm 20 is extended and supported asdescribed it will be capable of supportingconsiderable weight, so that apackage of mailable matter that is to be collected by a mailman may behung therefrom, if this is desired.

Upon the front wall of the mail-box alight metal frame E23 may besecured, having several divisions for holding name plates or cards Q4,that are marked with the names of persons who use the box to receivemail, and thus afford a directory for the information of' themail-carrier, as well as persons who may desire to learn the names ofoccupants of the building having the mail-box attached thereto.

It is apparent that the improved mail receiving and supporting devicemay be employed in towns or rural districts to equal advantage andafford a great convenience, enabling the postmen to more rapidly delivermail-matter than if it is handed to the occupants of houses, whichfrequently entails delay and loss of time, and as no mail can bedelivered without sounding' an alarm there is instant notification ofthe deposit of mail, so that it may be promptly removed by the party whoreceives the mail from a particular box, and is supplied with a key thatwill open the box-door.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent- 1. In a mail-box, the combination with a box havingan aperture in its front wall, a door hung pendent in said aperture, anda heavy batten-strip affixed upon the lower edge of the door and havinga projecting end preventing the door from swinging outward, of analarm-bell on the box, and means for sounding the bell, said means beingactuated when the door is swung inward.

2. ln a mail-box, the combination with a box having a substantiallyrectangular aperture in its front wall, a door hinged at its upper edgeso as to swing in the aperture, and a heavy batten-strip on the innerside of the door near its lower edge, said strip projecting at one endfor contact with the wall of the box for preventing the door fromswinging outward, of two alined levers, pivoted near their correspondingends upon aiprojection on the inner side of the front wall of the box,said ends of the levers having sloped edges that lap upon each other, abell on the end wall of the box toward which one of the levers extends,an angular bell-strike lever having a hammer-head, and pivoted on theend wall so that said hammer may imping'e upon the bell, one end of thelever that is nearest to the door being adapted for rocking movementwhen the door is opened and the end of the batten-strip contactstherewith, the outer end of the other lever engaging a member of thebell-strike lever for sounding the bell when the door is swung inward.

3. In a mail-box, the combination with a box having an aperture in thefront wall, and a door hung pendent in said aperture and controlled toswing inward only, of a bell on the exterior of the box at one endthereof, a perforate casing over the bell and secured on the end wall ofthe box, a bell-crank in the casing having a hammer on one end and heldto rock on the end wall of the box so the hammer may strike the bell,and means to rock the bell-crank for an impinge of the hammer on thebell when the door is swung inward.

4. In a mail-box, the combination with a box-body, of an arm pivoted byone end on an end wall of said box-body, and adapted for the projectionof its free end beyond the front wall of the box, and a resilientfing'erpiece on the free end of' the arm forming a pliers-clasp forholding' mail-matter that is to be collected, and a rest-block pivotedon the end of the box-body and adapted for engagement with the arm forits support in projected adjustment.

In testimony whereof' I have signed my name to this specification in theprescncc of two subscribing witnesses.

JAMES ALLAN BARCLAY.

I/Vitnesses:

Trios. JERMAN, LEVI Zumiens.

IOO

